Level XIII
by KitsuneFun
Summary: Roxas is forced into a life he never wanted and finally escapes on his wedding day but, is that the end or just the beggining for him? eventual AkuRoku XigDem and other pairings. Yaoi.
1. Chapter I

Hello and welcome to a new story from me: "Level XIII." This AU story involves the characters from Kingdom Hearts II that I love and will eventually be an AkuRoku fic (although there will be other pairings as well). I hope you all enjoy it, considering this if the first time I have written a full story involving them. I also have Ayme, the sane twin, helping out with beta-ing and plot ideas.

Disclaimer: KHII and the characters within belong to Square Enix, Disney, etc.

Level XIII-Chapter I

The Mojave Desert sun rose high into a cloudless sky, and that sun beat unmercifully down on the lone stretch of Highway 40 that ran through this desert. The sparse growth of plantation provided little coverage to the sandy earth, instead creating false images of water reflecting upon its surface. For a few hours no cars, or even any wildlife for that matter, were seen throughout the miles of dried up land leading to the faraway mountains, so it was surprising to see a wavering speck of white–that was clearly not a mirage–steadily growing larger on the horizon the closer the pink Lincoln convertible traveled down the lonely road towards it.

Brown eyes widened in surprise as they watched the speck gradually turn into the stumbling form of a girl with short, spiky, honey-blond hair and slightly tan skin wearing a simple, off-shoulder, white wedding gown as she walked in a swaying-like manner along the side of the desert highway. "Oh my god! Is that vintage Vera Wang?" the small girl with oddly layered brown hair that spiked up at the top and lay long and strait at the bottom squealed from her seat in the back of the pink car, hoping up and down as she pointed out towards the direction the car was traveling in and ignored the disgusted look of a slightly thin and tall boy with spiky, bleached-blond hair sitting in front of her.

"Dammit, Olette… Do you have to be so loud?" he yelled, trying to get the girl to calm down. "This is the last time I decide to take a road trip with you…, even if Naminé is getting married."

Olette sat back down in the backseat and crossed her arms over her chest as she pouted, "But Naminé would look so hot in vintage Vera Wang, Hayner." She apparently didn't think the sudden mentioning of finding prime couture in the middle of a desert was odd in the least.

The boy only rolled his eyes, "You're just seeing things." He then proceeded to ignore her in favor of searching for a decent radio station.

"Is that what you were talking about?"

At that, Hayner looked up and over at their driver, a petite girl with pale skin and red hair cut short in a shaggy cut, as she pointed out towards the wavering white speck in the distance. "Just ignore her Kairi. A lot of idiots like to see what they want in the middle of a desert." Olette smacked Hayner instantly on the back of the head for the comment.

"I wasn't hallucinating… There is a girl walking up ahead of us. Can't you see her?" Olette muttered, pointing again in the same direction as Kairi, where the white spot still stood and was growing steadily bigger as they drove nearer to it.

"Only you could see vintage Vera Wang five miles away, Olette," Hayner stated, rolling his eyes. He failed to notice that the closer they got to the speck of white the more it turned into the figure Olette had described.

"Wow…" Kairi mumbled in surprise, "It really_is_ a person in a white dress!" She had passed off the idea, thinking it was probably someone's trash thrown to the side of the road; they had seen similar items on their way towards Las Vegas.

Hayner sighed as he sat up to watch the figure, which he was beginning to see better the closer they came to it. It always surprised him that his cousin could see things at great distances. '_It must be a recessive gene_,' he thought, considering the majority of their family that had astigmatism. He wondered why a girl was out in the middle of a desert though, especially since there had been no cars in sight for the past fifty miles at least.

"Do you think we should help her?" Kairi mumbled, having wondered the same as Hayner without realizing it.

"Yes!" Olette squealed, "I wanna see the dress."

Kairi looked back at the brunette through the rear view mirror briefly before taking a deep calming breath, knowing it wouldn't do any good to correct her friend. '_Olette can really be insensitive sometimes,_' she thought, pulling up next to the figure and watching the flat-chested girl waver on her feet as she turned to stare over at them with large, slightly slanted blue eyes.

"Fuck…" Hayner mumbled, finally getting a look at the girl's face. She was barely taller than Olette and was clearly smaller around the waist and chest, but he had never seen anyone cuter. "She's hot…"

Olette stopped eyeing the dress for a moment to glare at him a bit. "Pig…" she mumbled, watching as he ignored her yet again in favor of eyeing the surprised girl at the side of the road who continued to stare at them.

Kairi was the first to speak. "You look like you need help." It wasn't a question. Looking at the state of the other girl, Kairi noticed that, other than the dress she was wearing, she didn't seem to have any possessions on her.

The blond fixed her large, unblinking blue eyes on Kairi for a moment in contemplation, looking like she might speak, but before she could utter a word her eyes began to shutter and flew up into the back of her head as she passed out next to their vehicle.

"Oh my god… She's dead!" Olette gave off an ear piercing shriek, standing up in the back of the car as she looked down at the fallen girl.

Kairi quickly unbuckled herself, got out of the car, and ran towards the girl's side followed by Hayner, who was slower in responding due to the delayed shock of being faced with such a cute girl. "Come on. Let's get her inside the vehicle, Hayner. I think the gas station attendant we spoke to back in Dryfield said it would only be a couple of hours to reach a hotel. Maybe we can call to see if there are any doctors available that can help her when we get there."

Hayner looked down at the passed-out girl in concern. From his point of view, it would be a total waste if the cute girl died before he had a chance to try to get her to go out with him. "Will she make it?"

Kairi leaned down on her knees and gently placed two fingers against the girl's neck, happy to feel a steady pulse thrumming beneath her finger tips. She then leaned her head down, placing her cheek close to the girl's mouth, and was further relieved to feel a steady intake and out take of breath against her cheek. "Thank goodness... It seems like she's just exhausted," she stated while sitting back on her heels. "Hayner, place her in the back seat with Olette. We're taking her with us to the hotel."

The boy slowly nodded in understanding before leaning down to pick up the still unconscious girl. She was apparently heavier than she looked, as he grunted slightly under the weight, but finally managed to move her towards the back of the car where he lay her next to Olette. "I wonder what she was doing out here..." he mumbled absentmindedly while leaning close to study the gentle face of the girl as she slept below him. He was almost tempted to trace his fingers over a cheek, curious to see if it was as soft as it looked.

"Who knows," Kairi stated, getting back into the driver's seat and followed reluctantly by Hayner as he sat back in the passenger's seat next to her. "But maybe we'll find out more when she wakes up." Hayner was almost tempted to change seats with Olette, but he knew his cousin would refuse since she hated sitting in the front seat.

The three young people drove off with their new passenger towards the "Awakening Hotel," unaware that a dark, cloaked figure sat watching them from the seat of his black corvette. "Xenmas isn't going to like hearing his son's pet has escaped..."

I hope you enjoyed the first chapter. There will be some more introductions in the next chapter and more information about "the girl." Please leave a comment/critique. Can't wait to hear your opinions and, please, stay tuned.


	2. Chapter II

This chapter introduces our two main characters, Roxas and Axel, as well as an important secondary character, Demyx. I hope you enjoy the story. beta-ed by Lady Chimera..

Disclaimer: characters belong to Square Enix, Disney, etc.

Level XIII-Part II

The Mojave desert sun can be merciless to the inexperienced traveler, but in the evening, when the sun descends slowly to the horizon, it can lend the most beautiful colors to the lonely earth.

Blue-grey eyes watched the sunset from the window of the hotel room they had obtained at the 'Awakening Hotel.' As far as hotels go, it was rather small and dingy, with items that used to be fashionable in the '60's era but looked trashy in the rundown hotel, but, considering it was a better option that spending a night in the car, it would have to do for tonight.

A quiet moan came from the lone bed in the room that Kairi had decided to stay in with Olette and their new companion; Hayner chose to sleep by himself in the room next door. Kairi had made the decision to watch the still passed-out girl, since there was no doctor in the nearby area to look into her condition.

Kairi hoped, as she had mentioned to her traveling companions before, that the girl was just exhausted and needed time to rest. Considering the sounds coming from the girl, it sounded like she was fine, to Kairi's relief. She stood up from her position sitting next to the window and moved to sit next to the blond girl on the bed.

The girl's honey-blond spikes lay in disarray about her head, an unusual look, but it oddly suited the pretty, almost heart-shaped face of the younger girl. She was a lot thinner-looking, laying on her back against the green flowered coverlet, but, in Kairi's experience, she has known men who unfortunately liked that anorexic look on girls.

Leaning closer she noticed that the girl didn't wear any makeup but had thick black lashes and tan yet soft- and clear-looking skin that made Kairi feel a little self conscious about her own looks. "I can see why Hayner thinks you're cute..." The girl's eyes slowly opened, revealing those large, brilliant blue eyes once more.

Kairi smiled, raising her hand a bit in greeting, "Hi."

The girl frowned a bit at her before slowly sitting up and looking around the surrounding room. "Where am I?" she said in a somewhat husky yet sweet-sounding voice.

"Well..." Kairi blushed a bit, rubbing a finger against her cheek in nervousness at the other girl's behavior, "When you passed out, we decided to take you with us to the hotel. It's a good thing you were only exhausted since there aren't any doctors around here..."

She was startled when the blond haired girl turned her head quickly to stare at her after hearing her explanation. "How far have we traveled?"

Kairi shrugged her shoulder a bit, "I guess it's been about fifty miles from where we last picked you up." She watched the girl turn her head and give a muffled curse that Kairi couldn't make out. "Are you in trouble?"

The girl turned to eye her suspiciously for a moment before opening her mouth, "I..." At the red haired girl's curious look, she sighed slightly, "It's nothing that more distance couldn't fix..."

"Jealous boyfriend?" Kairi didn't know why the thought came to mind, but it reminded her of a recent Oprah episode she had watched last week with Olette on cheating spouses.

It seemed to have the opposite reaction for the girl who started to laugh a bit, "Something like that..." She tilted her head as she stared at the redheaded girl next to her. The unblinking perusal was started to get to Kairi, and she started to say something only to be interrupted by the girl again. "I'm sorry... I'm not used to dealing with other people. My name is Roxas by the way." She held out her left hand in greeting.

"Roxas?" Kairi gave a short laugh, "That's an interesting name." She clasped the other girl's hand finding that she had a surprisingly strong grip. "My name's Kairi."

Roxas gave a small smile and stood up, "If it's ok..., I would like to use the shower." She turned her head to indicate the door behind her.

Kairi blushed a bit and scratched at her cheek again in a nervous habit, "I probably would too if I had been stuck out in the middle of nowhere with nothing... If you like, I can lend you some of my clothes." The blonde haired girl seemed surprised at the offer. '_She must not be used to people being kind to her_,' Kairi couldn't help but think. "I'm a little bigger around the hips, but some of my clothes should fit you ok."

Roxas looked down, remembering the dress he had been forced to wear and sighed; it wasn't like there were any other choices, "Sure. I would appreciate it."

"Good!" Blue eyes watched the redheaded girl clap her hands happily before sitting up quickly and moving over towards her bright pink luggage. Remembering the pink Lincoln convertible they had picked him up in, Roxas was starting to second guess the decision to wear some of her clothes though, since she seemed to like a lot of pink.

Kairi continued to rummage through her suitcases trying to find something to fit Roxas, oblivious to the other person's thoughts. Without looking up, she waved in the direction of the bathroom, "Why don't you take that shower now, and I'll give you the clothes later, ok?"

Roxas nodded once before realizing Kairi wouldn't see the gesture, "Ok... I'll be inside."

Kairi waved her hand again in answer, not noticing as Roxas retreated to the bathroom. Looking through the luggage, she decided on lending the blond her black short-sleeved t-shirt with 'Bitch' in pink rhinestones on the front, navy clamdiggers, and black and white converse shoes with pink socks. She felt Roxas could always use whatever underwear she was wearing underneath the dress, it was better than what she had anyways.

Having found the outfit, Kairi stood up and walked over to the bathroom, noticing the hot water sending steam through the cracks of the door as she walked in without thinking about the other occupant inside. "I hope these are ok... I think they will fi–Holy shit!" Her blue-grey eyes widened in shock upon seeing the naked form of the girl standing before her, realizing she wasn't a girl at all. "You're a guy!" she almost yelled, dropping the clothes as she held up a shaking hand as she pointed in Roxas's direction, as he stared at her in an almost equal amount of shock at being interupted.

Roxas quickly grabbed one of the hotel's complementary towels and held it in front of his lower region. "Of course I am a guy..." he muttered angrily while trying to wrap the towel around his thin hips, finding to his discomfort, that it barely fit.

He watched the girl's eyes as they slowly trailed down from his softly muscled chest and rosy nipples, down to his flat stomach that sported a navel piercing–a little, square, gold charm on a golden ring with a keyhole-like shaped cut in the center of it–to the small bit of golden curls of hair visible just above the towel. "Will you stop staring at me!" Roxas yelled feeling very uncomfortable standing like this before the redhead, benefactor or not.

Blue-grey eyes snapped up to stare into his own in continued surprise, her mouth hanging open slightly before emitting a slight squeaking sound and snapping shut, "I...I'm sorry..." Her face turned a bright red and she dropped the clothes before quickly running outside of the bathroom and slamming the door behind her.

Roxas shook his head in bemusement over the whole situation before leaning down to grab the clothes the girl had brought him. He sighed slowly in annoyance at her choice but realized she had only thought they were appropriate since she had thought he was another girl.

Despite the feminine aspects of the clothes, they were surprisingly loose and comfortable on his frame. Looking in the mirror, he gave his reflection a scowl, thinking that his former fiancé would have liked the look, and almost considered trying to find something else, but he was again reminded of where he was and of the fact that, considering where he could have been, this was a fairly good–no, _great_–consolation.

Having put on the clothes, Roxas exited the bathroom and looked at the other girl where she sat on the bed facing away from him. She flinched upon hearing the door open, "I am _so _sorry. I..."

"Don't worry about it," Roxas reluctantly grinned, realizing that this girl had helped him in ways he couldn't even begin to think how to possibly pay her back for.

"No..." The girl shook her head, turning to face him with one leg up on the bed, "I didn't mean to insult you. You have your own preferences and all."

'_She's probably thinking I like to dress that way considering the dress I was wearing earlier_...' Roxas thought, watching in amusement as the girl's red face brightened again.

"How about we start over," she said, before standing up and walking over towards Roxas. Trying to ignore the fact that she was few inches taller than him, she held out her hand jovially, "My name is Kairi. And you are...?"

Her actions made Roxas give a genuine smile for once, "Nice to meet you, Kairi. My name is Roxas."

The redheaded girl nodded, putting her hands on her hips, "Good... I think we need food." She turned and started heading stiffly out the door, only turning once to acknowledge him a moment. "Aren't you coming?"

Roxas could feel his lips twitch as they threatened to smile again. He nodded in answer, "Sure... Food sounds good." She smiled and nodded again before leaving, expecting him to follow. '_I think I am going to like freedom_,' he thought and followed her to the hotel's diner.

---

It was around 10:30 am when an Aquafina water delivery van pulled into the hotel's parking lot and parked next to the restaurant called 'Sunrise Diner.' A man with long, spiky red hair that fell almost midway down his back turned off the engine and got out of the van to stretch his arms up over his head. "Damn... Never thought it would take so long to reach someplace to eat..." His stomach seemed to grumble in agreement as he rubbed it absentmindedly. "Hey, Demyx, get your ass out here!" He turned bright, slanted green eyes towards the passenger side of the van where his partner lay back into the cushions of the front seat.

The front of his faux, dirty-blond-colored mohawk had fallen a bit in the heat and slightly covered his glazed blue-green eyes. "Piss off, Axel..." he grumbled from his seat, having crossed his arms and was acting generally annoyed with the whole world at the moment.

Axel rolled his eyes at the other man's actions. He would have considered his partner bi-polar if he hadn't known better; Demyx was only angry because he hadn't had his morning coffee yet and would no doubt be back to his overly-perky self once he had a pot or two in his system. "Fine, Mr. Sunshine... I'll go in and get your coffee. Just sit out here. I'll be back."

Demyx only mumbled his assent, turning to lay his head back against the seat again to catch a few minutes of lost sleep while the redhead was gone. "Stupid...insensitive...bastard," he yawned, missing the redhead glaring in his direction briefly for the comment before heading inside the diner.

The diner had a retro 60's feeling to it, which amused Axel as he stared at the out-dated fixtures, black and white tiled floor, and red cushy booths and stools. He walked over to one of the stools at the plain white counter and decided to order breakfast. Knowing Demyx was still sleeping in the van, he decided to bring him his coffee a bit later after he had satisfied his still grumbling stomach.

A woman with strawberry red hair pulled up into a beehive walked slowly over to him as though she had all the time in the world. '_Probably does_,' Axel thought, "_considering the lack of customers_..."

He was surprised by the jingling sound of bells as the front door opened. A brunette girl came in with a boy with dirty-blond, short spiky hair, a girl with short red hair, and... '_Shit_...' was Axel's response as his brain temporarily shut down at the appearance of what he thought was a girl at first, what with her short, spiky, honey-blond hair and large blue eyes.

"Sir?" Axel was brought out of his temporary stupor by the waitress tapping rather roughly on his shoulder. He wonder briefly how long she had been standing there. "Are you going to order or what?"

Axel found his face heating up and he grudgingly nodded. "Uh, yeah..." he coughed a bit in his embarrassment, "I'll have a hamburger with all the fixings, and if you have some jalapenos can you add those on?" The waitress looked at him like he was mental before roughly jotting down his order on a pad of paper.

"That all?" she asked, looking at him in an annoyed fashion, as she did so.

Axel tried to give her an reassuring smile. He normally didn't act so unusual, but he'd never seen anyone as cute as the blond that had just entered the diner either. "And a cherry Coke, thanks."

The waitress only shook her head, mumbling about annoying customers as she walked off, giving Axel the time to look over at the party that had entered after him. They had sat down in the booth nearest him and had started chatting. He found his eyes straying towards the blond who had caught his attention earlier and to his good fortune she was thankfully seated on the side of the booth where Axel could see her face. She seemed a little uncomfortable however with the surroundings but continued to give a slight smile towards her companions when they asked a question.

It seemed like the lone boy was talking this time. "So where are you headed?"

The blond girl seemed confused by the question; her blue eyes seemed to unfocus a bit, and she bit her lower lip slightly before answering, "I'm not sure, to be honest..."

The redheaded girl sitting next to her only smiled, placing a comforting hand on the blond girl's forearm, "Its ok... If you want, Roxas, you can come to Las Vegas with us."

"You mean to the wedding?" the brunette gasped at the offer. "But what will Naminé say, Kairi?"

The redhead only glared at her friend a bit at her attitude, "Look, I am not about to leave Roxas in the middle of nowhere... He doesn't have anything to his name..."

Axel was surprised to hear that the blond was actually a boy, but it was the name that caught his attention the most. '_Didn't Luxord say something about Xenmas's son, Seifer, marrying someone named Roxas_...?'

"But Kairi..." the brunette whined a bit, sounding almost like a kicked puppy.

"Shut up, Olette." This came from the normal looking blonde boy, in Axel's opinion. "I agree with Kairi and think he should come with us. Naminé would be the first one to say Roxas should come. Besides..., maybe we can help him to get situated once we reach Vegas." Hayner had been as surprised as Kairi and Olette to learn that Roxas was a boy, but he realized it would have been very awkward if he had tried dating the other blonde, only to find out _he_ had extra equipment down below.

Olette gave another sigh-like whine, "Fine, but just remember I said it was a bad idea..."

Kairi gave a relieved grin and turned to Roxas and placed an arm across his shoulder, "See? No problem."

Roxas smiled then, and it made Axel's heart jump a bit in awareness at the sight. '_He's really cute_...'

Roxas seemed unaware of his audience as he nodded, "Thank you. I don't know what would have happened if I hadn't met you guys..."

Hayner gave a light laugh, "Not a problem..., though I might have to lend you something else, unless you like wearing Kairi's girly clothes?"

"Hayner!" Kairi yelled, sitting up briefly to hit the other boy on the top of his head while the waitress walked over to take their orders.

"Where's my coffee?" an annoyed voice off to Axel's side said.

Green eyes turned to stare at his partner with an angry glare at the interuption. "Weren't you sleeping?" the redhead asked, trying to stem the desire to look at Roxas again.

Demyx's glare just hardened at the question, "I couldn't sleep, so I decided to come and see what was taking so long." He signaled the waitress over after she took the other kids' orders and quickly got a cup of his much-desired coffee, making the waitress agree to come back with the pot though she eyed him strangely at the request.

After a few cups and Axel's food had arrived, the redhead decided to ask his now normally-perky partner the question that had been nagging at him since he had heard Roxas' name. "Do you remember Luxord saying something about a celebration happening at 'The Organizations' desert complex?"

Demyx gave a huge smile and clapped his hands together in excitement, "Yeah. It's great news. We might even be able to sneak in with the whole complex being in such a happy mood!"

Axel rolled his eyes at his partner's enthusiasm, "What exactly was the celebration?" He took a sip from his cherry Coke.

Blue-green eyes twinkled in delight before leaning in as though whispering a secret, "The leader's son is getting married to another man."

The news made Axel spit out the drink he had just swallowed, "What!?" The redhead coughed, choking slightly on his drink.

The action made Demyx laugh, "Dude, you should have seen your _face_." At a quirk of Axel's red brow, he leaned in again, smiling, "Apparently the boy is about a year younger...around seventeen years old and _hot_..." He gave a wink, knowing quite well that Axel was bi-sexual and would no doubt wonder what this boy looked like. He pulled out a picture from his jeans pocket and lifted it to Axel's still shocked eyes, "His name is Roxas. He's the blond standing next to that punk Seifer."

Sure enough, as though lady luck was on Axel's side, his target, Xenmas's son, Seifer, stood next to the same blond that sat across from him in one of the diner's booths. He couldn't help but wonder though. Why had the boy left "The Organization?"

-------------------------------------------------(KH)

Well, that's it for Chapter II. Stay tuned for Chapter III. Please review.


	3. Chapter III

As promised, I have returned with a new chapter of "Level XIII." This chapter shows more of Axel and Roxas and fully introduces the sexy sniper, Xigbar. There is hinting at another pairing in this chapter as well. Thanks to my Beta, Lady Chimera.

Disclaimer: characters belong to Square Enix, Disney, etc.

"Let me take you to a Gay-Bar, Let me take you to a Gay-Bar, Gay-Bar, Gay-Bar..." The ringtone started playing, making a flustered Axel rush to take it out of the side pocket of his tight blue jeans. He was almost tempted to break the damn thing to make it stop. Instead, the redhead turned to glare at Demyx–knowing he was the culprit for the recent change in ring-tones–as he flipped the cellphone open and answered it while giving Demyx a look that promised death later, "Hello?"

"Axel..." a smooth baritone answered. It belonged to none other than their informant and the Chief of Security within "The Organization"'s desert compound.

"Yeah its me, Luxord." He tried to ignore Demyx laughing beside him and wondered if it was possible to resurrect a dead person and kill them again. "I'm surprised that you're calling me this late...its almost 8pm," He decided to focus his attention away from his partner and ended up facing in the same direction as Roxas's table again.

The blond looked up in his direction as if noticing he was being watched and turned slightly red before turning his attention back towards his fellow diners, Axel found the action cute.

"I wanted to talk to you about a change in plans..."

Axel cleared his throat, inadvertently interrupting the older man, "Hey, Luxord, can you wait a minute? The reception's not too good here," he mumbled while getting up from his stool quickly and rushing outside, ignoring Demyx's questioning glace and his waitress's frustration as she started to walk over with his food. Axel had a feeling that he was pushing his luck by sitting so close to Seifer's supposed "wife" and decided to take the conversation outside in order to protect his plans.

Having finally made it outside, he strode over to his van and leaned his back against the hood before continuing his talk with Luxord. "So what's this change in plans? I thought it was all set."

Luxord gave a rather undignified snort, "I only wish things were that easy, but Xenmas has denied access to the compound by any of the guests who were planning to stay here during the wedding ceremony. Unfortunately, Seifer's bride apparently decided he didn't want to get married and ended up running away while the driver was changing a flat tire in the middle of the desert..."

Axel was almost shocked speechless by the news, "But wouldn't the driver have noticed him in the rear view mirror when he drove away? And wouldn't there have been a body guard or someone who would have noticed?"

There was a loud, drawn-out sigh on the other end. "Seifer had his mind set on a night service under the stars. He thought it would be romantic," Luxord gave a dry-sounding laugh at that, "He also didn't think it would matter to have any protection at the time since the driver was only taking Roxas to where the service was taking place, and by then it wouldn't matter because Roxas would be his. Unfortunately, he didn't bank on the limo getting a flat tire and the driver being too stupid or sleepy to make sure the passenger in the back seat was still there or not."

"I'm surprised Xenmas wouldn't want to give the guests some kind of compensation for coming all that way and not being able to see the wedding." The news somewhat startled the redhead, whose thoughts turned to Roxas again. '_Why would he leave all of that_...?' As far as Axel knew, Xenmas was considered a billionaire philanthropist with ties throughout the world, and Seifer was his only heir. Who would give all that up?

Luxord unknowingly answered his silent question, "You know how 'The Organization' likes to believe they are their own country and above the law."

"Yeah..., I heard something about that..." No one who entered "The Organization" was poor or lacking in prestige.

"Well, apparently Seifer was so obsessed with these twins that refused to play with him at the park, despite all the money and toys they were offered," Axel couldn't help but think how great the kids were for not letting monetary gains control their hearts, "that Xenmas abducted them and raised them with Seifer. Seifer's obsession didn't stick with just friendship though. When he became a teenager, he began to look at Roxas a lot differently." Axel hated where this story was going. "With Sora there, Seifer wasn't able to get his way, and, unfortunately, Sora didn't realize what he ended up doing to his brother by leaving 'The Organization' for the outside world."

"So Seifer got what he wanted until last night is what you're saying." Axel was starting to dislike his mark less and less.

There was a pause on the other end, which started to make Axel feel uncomfortable. "I've never seen Seifer this upset. I almost don't want them to find the kid..." Luxord paused again, "Roxas doesn't deserve the things that brat made him do. For now, Xenmas is making sure nobody comes near Seifer until either the boy calms down or Roxas is returned."

"Fuck!" Axel ran a hand through his hair in frustration at the news. That meant all the work to get this far in obtaining the bounty on Seifer was for not. He looked up and spotted Roxas with his new friends in the window and found himself saying something he thought he never would, "What if someone was to bring Roxas in?"

Luxord went quiet on the other end of the line, making the redhead shift uneasily from foot to foot, "You realize that you're taking a chance on someone else's life?"

Axel gave a tight-sounding laugh, "Ah, but I seem to remember someone who once said that Life was nothing but a big game of chance..."

"You _would_ remember I said that..."

He could hear Luxord shifting and there was the brief sound of clicking on the other end like he was typing something. "If you can bring him here, then I will make sure you end up seeing Seifer personally. Just call me when you have him."

"Will do," Axel stated, lifting his fingers briefly to his head in a brief cub-scout salute despite the fact Luxord couldn't see him doing so. His answer was the older man disconnecting on him, and he sighed a bit before putting the phone away. '_All I have to do now is get Roxas there_,' he thought, grimacing a bit at the idea. It came pretty close to breaking his first rule of bounty hunting, '_Never get involved with your bounty_,' but with Roxas he had a feeling all his rules might soon go flying right out the window.

Axel didn't notice the black Corvette that pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant and stopped in one of the parking spaces. He walked back inside the restaurant to work over a plan with Demyx while eating his meal.

A lone, gold-colored eyed narrowed a bit as it followed the tall, skinny redhead as he walked back inside the restaurant. A slight buzzing soon alerted him to a text message on his phone, and he picked it up from its place in its dashboard carrier before clicking through the buttons to reach the latest message. It was from Luxord:

'_Change of plans, Xigbar. Continue following the pink Lincoln Convertible. Await instructions. L._'

Xigbar clicked the message off and sighed as he leaned back into the leather fabric of his seats, making them squeak a bit. "I swear, this is the last time I let Saïx make me agree to getting a car that matches my looks..." Not that it wasn't bad being considered cool by the younger employees, but it came with the territory along with his scar and eyepatch; people naturally expected him to be a bad-ass and not someone who would prefer having a vehicle that got better gas milage.

Redoing his ponytail that had loosened a bit with the air-conditioning blowing, Xigbar decided to go inside the restaurant and get something to eat while waiting for the next step in Luxord's plans involving Seifer's intended.

It wasn't until he walked inside that he realized his apparent bad luck–Roxas was sitting inside. He turned around quickly and tried to exit the restaurant, in order to make sure that the youth didn't realize he was being followed, only to accidentally bump into a shorter male which caused both of them to fall in a tangle of limbs.

'_Gods, this is not my day_...' Xigbar thought while trying to sit up. He paused in shock at the cute young man that lay beneath him, stunned, "Well, damn..."

"Is that what you normally say when you knock into someone?"

Xigbar hadn't realized he had said that thought aloud until he noticed the other male–who had a dirty-blond faux mohawk and the prettiest ocean-colored eyes–laugh beneath him.

"Oh god... I'm sorry," Xigbar lifted his body up while helping the other to stand.

The boy grinned as he stared up at Xigbar, "Not 'God.' My name's Demyx, but you're forgiven if you buy me a decent cup of coffee." The waitress glared at him from behind the counter for the comment considering he had already drunk a pot of coffee and he hadn't been complaining at the time.

Xigbar was struck again by the odd course of his luck and managed to nod his acknowledgment, "Sure. I know of a Starbucks down the road if you..." He was unable to finish the sentence before Demyx drug him outside with a well placed wave to the redhead watching them from the counter.

"Later, Ax-man. I'm getting a Caramel Frappachino!" Demyx yelled as he left, dragging a surprisingly pacifistic Xigbar behind him.

Axel only shook his head and laughed at his partner. That guy normally didn't do anything for coffee despite what others might think, but him leaving like that may have had something to do with the man that had entered the establishment. The redhead knew for a fact that his partner had a thing for dark and dangerous bad boys. He only hoped the obviously older man could keep up with Demyx.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------(KH)

I would like to thank Lady, who reviewed the previous chapter, I hope you and everyone else reading this story, have enjoyed the chapter. Please, review, because I would love to hear your thoughts on the story. Stay tuned for chapter IV and an interesting "Coffee Scene."


	4. Chapter IV

I am sorry for the delay with this chapter. The first version of this chapter was actually different than this, but the content was going in a direction that I didn't want the fic to go in, so I ended up rewriting it. This chapter doesn't have Axel and Roxas in it, but it does provide a bit of Roxas's past and includes some Xigbar and Demyx interaction. I hope you enjoy it and please review. I would love to hear your comments on the story. Thanks to Lady Chimera for editing the story.

Disclaimer: characters belong to Square Enix, Disney, etc.

1Often times, Demyx saw fate one of two ways. One way was as a best friend that you kind of expected things from, like taking the last Heineken out of the fridge or getting upset when one's black and tan, miniature dachshund puppy decides that your hair is a good pillow to sleep on and proceeds to turn the spiky red mass into a sopping wet mess. Yes, unfortunately Goofy had a problem with drooling, but that was no reason for Axel to put a diaper for a muzzle on his poor puppy before he went to sleep, which was often considering the poor dog was narcoleptic.

(Demyx's inner minds rant goes on for a while, so for the sake of time and coherency we'll pick up afterwards.)

The second way Demyx saw fate was as a dominatrix who comes out of nowhere, like that night in Vegas at the 'Coliseum's' gay strip bar, and makes you lick his boots and say you've been a bad little boy and need a spanking.

...Ok, maybe not that bad, but close.

So, in a way, getting knocked into by a hot older guy who seemed like just his type was fate. If that was the case, then Demyx wasn't about to complain considering the hot guy, who introduced himself as Xigbar, had just willing bought him two venti caramel frappachinos and was open to buying him more. This was turning out to be one hell of a day. There was only one way it could be better…

"So…" Demyx started to say while taking a sip from his frappachino, "You gay?" He watched as the older man choked a bit on his Venti 'House Blend' coffee, plain, and his lone golden eye widen in surprise.

"Er…why," a cough, "do you ask?" This was turning out to be one of the weirdest days in Xigbar's life.

Demyx gave a slow smile from behind his cup as he looked up at his companion, "Just curious…" he took another long sip, "and, if you don't mind me saying so, you look like you'd have to beat them off with a stick."

This admission of course caused coffee to inadvertently loge in Xigbar's esophagus again, making him cough loudly, "I guess…" another cough, "There aren't many I know that would agree with that…"

Demyx's mouth pauses in mid-suck in surprise at the confession, "Really?" He eyed the older man across from him slowly. Sure, he was older by a few years, but his body was tall, lean, and well packed with muscle that made the other appear like a warrior just off the field of duty, and Demyx personally loved a man in uniform–or out in Xigbar's case. He liked the mental image that came to mind at the thought.

"Yeah…" The older man ran a finger unconsciously across the line of the scar that ran from his jaw, across his left cheek, and stopped just under his left eye, "Well, I can count the people who have given me the time of day on my right hand alone… so I know that I'm not much to look at…"

The older man heard his companion give an indignant snort at that, "Idiots…" Demyx grabbed Xigbar's hand, pulling it away from his face where he was still tracing the line of the scar and replaced it with his own hand, "I like it…" Demyx gave a slow wink as he traced the puckered skin, "Gives you character…like a bad-ass super marine."

Xigbar laughed briefly like he wasn't used to the action and gently pulled Demyx's hand away with his own, inadvertently holding onto it against the table as he looked over at the blonde quietly for a moment, "Sometimes Fate can surprise us I guess…"

Demyx's mouth that had opened in slight surprise at the older man's actions at holding his hand soon lifted into a slight smile, "As long as he's not a dom named Harry."

The comment made no sense to him, but it still made Xigbar laugh again before releasing the long and slender hand he had been holding, pushing it back towards its holder's side of the table, "I guess…"

Blue-green eyes crinkled a bit in happiness as the young man went back to his drink. Noticing the large amount of whipped cream at the top, Demyx stuck his finger through the hole of the lid and pulled out a sizeable amount before slowly letting his tongue come out to lick at the creamy, fluffy substance, "You know, you didn't answer my question earlier."

The movement made Xigbar gulp as he watched, fascinated by the showing of that pink tongue as it moved slowly up the length of the other's long index finger, flicking slightly at the tip before disappearing back into a soft yet firm-looking mouth, "Ah…which was what again?" He was having a hard time remembering what the blonde had talked about earlier.

Demyx gave a throaty laugh, accidentally dabbing his upper lip with some of the cream. "I asked if you were gay," he answered while licking his lip.

The new action made Xigbar's cheeks darken slightly as he watched Demyx, and if he didn't know any better he could swear the younger man was trying to seduce him. "It depends," he shrugged while lifting his coffee to sip at it slowly, making sure not to inadvertently drink too much around Demyx who seemed to like shocking him.

"Really? On what?" Demyx asked in confusion while tilting his head to the side as he regarded Xigbar.

The older man thought the expression was cute on the blonde. "I guess it depends on if it's because you're hoping I am or not." He watched as the other's face gradually turned from confused, to amused, and then to slightly happy. It would seem he might never be bored with someone like Demyx around, and he found that kind of challenge very interesting. "So are you?"

Demyx continued to smile in happiness, "Of course. You had me at, 'Well, damn.'" referring to when they had first met, quite literally, bumped into each other, "but in case that's too cryptic or anything, let me say, _Hell Yes_!"

Xigbar grinned, 'Maybe today isn't turning out so bad after all...'

---

"This fucking day sucks…" Saïx mumbled as he walked down the long hallway of the thirteenth floor of "The Organization"'s desert compound. It was only accessible via private elevator that only the highest leveled members, namely those of Xenmas's choosing, had access to. It also happened to be the floor that Seifer–and formerly Roxas–had shared together…like a mini-home for the two of them.

There was only one exit and entrance to the underground facility, and the hallways ran in a continuous square that brought you right back to where you started. It was made that way for security measures in order to protect the highest-ranking members. Not many lived in the compound, preferring to live outside and commuting to the far away instillation when necessary since the majority of the building that wasn't placed inside the mountainside somewhere in the Mojave Desert was underground and had thirteen levels, the majority of which that weren't used for housing were used for "The Organization"'s secretive ventures.

It creeped Saïx out a bit to be this far underground, but it was Seifer's choice to live on Level 13, not his. He walked towards the only door, which was placed against the far end of the hallway just before he would have to turn a corner, and knocked on the wooden surface of the door.

Any noise within the room was muffled due to the sound-proof walls that had specifically been placed in that room alone which made Saïx slightly nervous as he wondered what kind of state he would find his master's son in once he stepped inside.

It was a couple of minutes before the door opened, showing a suspiciously quiet Seifer who glared silently up at him before turning on his heel and entering his room again to sit back down on the massive king sized bed placed in the center.

The rest of the room seemed like one massive war zone. Everything other than the mattress, TV, and DVD player seemed intact. The rest had been torn apart, broken, or otherwise demolished by the overly quiet youth.

Seifer had pulled his normally bright, golden-blond hair back into a black bandana and was wearing a simple dark blue t-shirt with "Sex Pistols" written on it in pink and a pair of faded denim jeans filled with holes from where he had cut into them to create such a look.

Saïx slowly walked over until he was about a foot away from the boy and watched as he stared transfixed at the TV screen. Despite his better judgment, the older man turned to look at the screen and froze.

The younger boy turned up the volume once Saïx turned his head to stare at the screen. Long, drawn-out moans and gasps were heard coming from the television, "Sei… ah…" It was Roxas laying naked with his back against the bed's black silk coverlet, and he was slightly delirious in desire as he lifted his head to stare into the lens of the camera, "T..turn…it off…" he watched how the other blond tugged at the black silk covered handcuffs that pinned his arms to the headboard of the bed, to no avail, since it wouldn't move unless Seifer removed them.

Saïx watched in horrified fascination as Seifer's camera lens was lowered to show him inserting his erection into the smaller boy before pulling up to watch the blonde's face as Seifer thrust into him. "No. I like watching you…" his recorded voice muttered in a lust filled voice, neither boy spoke after that; only more grunts, thrusts, moaning and gasping of combined voices as they both reached their completion could be heard over the recording.

"Why did he leave?"

Saïx was surprised by the depressed sound of the younger man's normally angry and demanding-sounding voice. "He probably needed to use the restroom, and the driver was too stupid to see he wasn't there and drove off." He doubted that's what really happened though, knowing how much Roxas hated Seifer who took pleasure in torturing him in any way he could when he was at the compound.

It seemed like Seifer didn't believe the notion either as he lifted narrowed green eyes to glare up at Saïx before he rose to his feet to face the taller man. "Are you mocking me?"

Saïx knew better than to test the enraged boy's patience further, and he crossed his arms to appear unaffected by the blonde's actions and words though he was far from feeling so. '_Why does Xenmas always insist _I_ be the runner between him and his son?_' he thought while watching as Seifer circled him a moment. "I wouldn't dream of it, Mr. Reigen."

Seifer had never hidden his distaste for the older man that worked as a secretary for his father. He hated how he looked, from his long, cerulean-colored hair, to his patent leather shoes he wore along with the dark gray Armani suit Xenmas forced him to wear in order to uphold the image of his Organization, "You're nothing but my father's bitch. Why should I give a shit about what comes out of your mouth?" He completed the circle around Saïx, ending up facing him again.

"Because…" Saïx leaned down a bit until he was smirking into the boy's face, "This bitch happens to know where your precious Roxas is…" He would have preferred to say whore, but it was really Seifer who made the other boy that way.

Seifer grunted his acknowledgement of what Saïx had said before turning back towards the bed to sit on it. "Make sure he's brought to me," he said briefly before picking up the remote to start the DVD again from the beginning.

"As you wish, Mr. Reigen," Saïx managed to grit out from between his clenched teeth. He really hated Xenmas's son, but he knew that any actions against the boy could end with not only his job coming to an end but quite possibly his life as well. That's just how "The Organization" worked.


	5. Chapter V

I would like to thank everyone who has read and commented on my new story. I appreciate all the support, and in response I have written an extra long chapter filled with plot, booze, car troubles, and a kiss. So enjoy. Edited by Lady Chimera.

Disclaimer: characters belong to Square Enix, Disney, etc.

The tone of the restaurant grew quiet after everyone had been delivered their food, and they took to enjoying the surprisingly delicious cuisine with relish.

"You know what would be really great right now?" Hayner mumbled suddenly as he leaned his body back against the red upholstery of the booth, lifting his arms to lay them against the back and crossed beneath his head before giving a low-sounding sigh of longing.

"I can only guess…" Olette groused, rolling her eyes over the boy's actions. She knew quite well what he wanted but was ignoring him for the most part due to his incessant moaning for the past three days over the same thing. "You need to get over it Hayner," she muttered in disgust before leaning down to take another sip of her diet Coke.

Apparently Hayner didn't appreciate her attitude at all. "Well, I wouldn't be in this predicament if someone hadn't moved my stuff out of the back of the car in the first place," he growled under his breath while glaring over at the brunette.

Olette froze in mid-sip, and while still holding the straw she turned to glare back at him, "How was I supposed to know your special Kentucky Blue was in that box?? It looked just like any other garbage to me!"

Roxas sat silently while watching the exchange in confusion, wondering what everyone was talking about all of a sudden. Seeing the confused look overtake the blond's face, Kairi smiled and decided to fill him in on a few things about the cousins, so she leaned in close and, in a conspiratory way, explained the situation, "You see, Olette accidentally removed Hayner's beer stash from the back of the car when we picked her up at a friend's house in Orange County because she needed room for another bag of clothes that she's taking on our trip to Vegas."

The two cousins had taken to glaring over their drinks at each other. Their antics not only drew the curious attentions of the waitress and the cook but also the tall, skinny-looking redheaded male that sat at the counter eating his dinner. Axel turned in his seat to regard them in amusement as the boy and girl continued to fight. It reminded him of Demyx, and he wondered briefly what had happened to his partner.

"It's not garbage! Do you realize what I had to go through to get that beer in the first place?!" Hayner yelled, ignorant of the stares from the other occupants of the diner as he clenched his fists in anger.

Olette knew exactly what he had gone through, considering their uncle was the one to send the special home brew to them in the first place. Hayner had gryped over the fact that it had cost him an arm and a leg to have it delivered to his house, but she hadn't thought about the consequences of her actions since she had needed the extra clothes for the trip, so she felt justified. "God, you're such a drama queen, Hayner!" Olette yelled back, easily drowning out his voice, "Only you would be interested in something that tastes like elephant piss…"

"That's rich, Olette," Hayner gave a dry, mocking laugh, "Who was the one who went ballistic because Donald decided to dissect her favorite pair of Jimmy Choos?"

Olette gasped, and her eyes widened in shock at being reminded of the horrifying incident. "You bastard!" she started, poking him in the chest with her right index finger in anger, "Who was the one that let Donald into my room in the first place? Of course he would have headed straight for the best leather there!" Her water spaniel unfortunately seemed to have an addiction to high quality leather, and she had taken to keeping her door closed in order for Donald not to get a hold of them while she was gone.

Kairi leaned her head against her palm in amusement before she continued to explain her two companions' actions to Roxas. "Donald is Kairi's water spaniel. He has a bigger fetish for shoes than she does," she laughed while leaning closer towards the blond boy until she was almost whispering in his ear, "I heard Hayner did it on purpose because Olette was going to tell Riku that Hayner thought he was hot…" Roxas's brow rose in curiosity over the new name. Kairi just waved her hand as if it wasn't anything important, "Naminé's half-brother. But you can't really blame Hayner. He IS about as pretty as you. Just with more of an attitude."

Roxas's eye twitched a bit at being referred to as not only pretty, which made him sound girly, but also that she thought he had an attitude. He allowed the slip though in favor of humoring his benefactor since she seemed to be on a roll explaining in brief detail about the cousin's past exploits against one another. It amazed Roxas that two people that were close family members could be so different from one another but could still genuinely like each other. It reminded him of his connection with his lost twin, Sora. _'I wonder where he is now..._' he thought briefly while swirling the straw in his glass for a bit in contemplation.

It seemed that none of the occupants at the table realized that a member of their audience had taken to standing next to them, at least not until he spoke. "Excuse me…" the voice coughed a bit effectively, interrupting the group who paused at the smooth tenor. It belonged to none other than the redhead that had been sitting at the counter a moment ago; the one that made Roxas blush due to the unwavering attention he had been given earlier by the man. He had never had anyone other than Seifer give him that type of thorough look before, yet, unlike Seifer, he found that he didn't really mind the attention from the redhead.

Kairi sighed, noticing that Hayner and Olette had decided to choose _now_ to start a mutual silent treatment and took it upon herself to be the speaker for the group, "Hi. Did you need something?"

Normally Axel didn't feel intimidated by approaching others, especially considering his occupation, but he found himself starting to figit beneath their stares, especially Roxas's. "Actually…" the tall, thin redhead started to say while trying to ignore the butterflies in his stomach as blue eyes focused on him, "I couldn't help overhearing that you wanted some beer."

Hayner's eyes blinked slowly as though he was having a hard time trying to decipher what the other man was saying. "You mean…" he gulped, "You know where I can get some Kentucky Blue?"

'_Is it my imagination or did he sound…perky?_' Axel thought with a chuckle. "Wow," the redhead gave a conspiratory smile, "You sure do like your booze," he ignored the odd look from Olette, "Actually, the place I know is a little off the beaten path, but they like to serve a lot of home brewed stuff along with some international brews." He figured it was safe to go there because the other bounty hunters that frequented the dive tended to keep to themselves.

"My god…" Hayner looked starry-eyed over the remark, "I had no idea such a place existed… An oasis of beer in the desert."

'_Well, technically,_' Axel thought as he watched the group, especially Roxas who had taken to glancing towards him silently out of the corner of his eye, '_It's not that well known because it's a place only those who are a part of the bounty hunter society frequent and exchange information on bounties from time to time._' Outwardly, he only continued to smile and nod even though he felt it might not be such a good idea, but their conversation had presented an opening for him to get close to Roxas and he was going to take it, "If it's ok, can I just ride with you and show you the way?"

Hayner answered first this time by jumping to his feet and clasping the redhead's hands tightly within his own, "I love you forever man." It was a little creepy how he continued to look like such a giddy kid over something as simple as a bottle of beer.

"It does sound like fun…" Kairi nodded, agreeing instantly with the idea, "We haven't had a chance to relax like this for the past couple of days. It would be fun to check out a local bar."

Olette, being the more hesitant among them–especially with places she wasn't used to–, instantly thought it was a bad idea, "I'm not going. What if there are biker men there? Or worse...geeks? I am _not_ going to a bar full of geeks and unattractive men that want to try to touch my butt all night."

"Like anyone would be interested in your flat ass," Hayner said, rolling his eyes in annoyance at his cousin's stupidity.

"That's because you've never had a Marilyn Manson clone stick his hand up your skirt to see if you were wearing a thong." She shuddered over the Halloween memory; it was the reason she tended to stay away from bars.

"Actually…" Kairi looked thoughtful as she tapped her chin with her index finger, "If I remember correctly, wasn't he the same guy that started asking Hayner if he wore boxers or briefs?"

Hayner looked over at her in horror at that. "Are you mad?" he muttered, turning red, which made the redheaded girl grin in delight over being able to tease the normally macho young man.

"Wow," Kairi winked at Roxas quickly, "I had no idea you were into that sort of thing Hayner."

"Shut up, Kairi…"

Roxas, who up until that point had been trying not to laugh, started to chuckle, finding the whole situation hilarious. It seemed to put both Kairi and the redheaded man in good spirits, because they began to laugh along with him. Even Olette, after a moment, began to chuckle, which earned a look of disgust from her cousin.

"God, you're a dork…" Olette muttered under her breath while shaking her head in amusement.

Hayner didn't find the situation funny at all and ended up glaring over at the brunette, "Well, at least I'm not a clothes whore like you…"

"God, you're such a bastard!" Olette yelled, standing up from her seat. "I can't take your attitude any longer. I'm going to my room!" She managed to squeeze past Hayner in the booth and preceded to walk out of the restaurant in a huff towards the hotel room she currently was sharing with Kairi.

"Good," Hayner stuck his tongue out at his retreating cousin's back, "More beer for us!"

Axel liked the boy's easily pleased attitude. "A guy after my own heart. My name's Axel Shuboushi by the way, but all my friends just call me Axel," he managed to look down at Roxas as he said this, giving him a slight wink, "Got it memorized?"

The shorter of the two blond boys only snorted at the question, not wanting the redhead's odd attention any longer. "Whatever…" he muttered, turning his head away.

Kairi looked at Roxas in surprise before turning to shake Axel's hand. "I'm Kairi Heart," she pointed to Hayner who raised a victory sign in response, "That's Hayner Griggs. The one that left was his cousin Olette. And this…" she pointed to Roxas who continued to ignore Axel, "is Roxas. Though I don't know his last name…" She turned to glare over at the boy for his silence, making him suddenly feel uncomfortable with the situation.

Axel was never one to give up on a challenge, either in bounty hunting or in life, and decided he was more than willing to take the time to get the blond to notice him. "Nice to meet you, Roxas Nobody," he quickly leaned down and grabbed the boy's hand, bringing it to his mouth before placing a kiss on the surprisingly soft skin which made Roxas's mouth open wide in shock at the touch.

Kairi, who might not appear so, was actually a huge fan of all boys love and was mentally squealing in delight at the show. "Wow, he's a keeper," she sighed dreamily, making Roxas look over at her like she was nuts. Kairi ignored him for the moment as she grinned over at an open-mouthed Hayner who was staring in surprise over at Axel who was still leaning over Roxas's hand, "Shall we go then?"

Maybe it was a connection between redheads or the fact that they both loved boys on a more intimate level, but Axel felt he had just meet a co-conspirator for life and was instantly happy with the prospect, "Great. Lead the way to your car, milady, and we can be on our way."

"Great. You can sit in the back with Roxas," Kairi was thrilled and ignored the mumbled squeak of indignity coming from Roxas at the idea, "This will be fun."

---

"This sucks!"

Xigbar turned to grin in amusement over at his cute companion. Demyx had started to pace back and forth over the stretch of asphalt alongside the highway in front of his car in frustration while pulling at his hair every once in awhile, making the normally decent-looking faux mohawk a mess.

"It's not that bad… I happen to know of some people out here that can help." The blonde only ignored Xigbar as he continued to mutter incoherently about deadlines and someone by the name of Axel killing him if he came up missing when they had a job to do. It wasn't something that Xigbar would normally find cute, but he couldn't help smiling over the energetic young man's antics. He pulled out his phone thoughtfully, wondering how long he could delay the tow truck coming by to help with his tire in order to prolong his "date" with Demyx. He could always call "The Organization"'s road-side service, but he knew that they would be quicker than any normal towing service and he didn't want that.

It was as he thought this that the phone began to vibrate in his hand, signaling a message was coming through. Curious about who could be texting him this late, Xigbar flipped open the phone and clicked through the buttons in order to retrieve the message. He was surprised to find another one from Luxord. '_I wonder what he wants now,_' he thought while opening the message to read it.

_Change of plans. Contact Axel Shuboushi (702) 733-1802. We want you to work with him and his associate to bring Roxas in. Please respond when you have located them. Plans will be arranged later. L_

A lone golden eye read the message then reread it again, hoping that he wasn't misreading what he had been ordered to do by Xemnas's Chief of Security. Thinking this just had to be a coincidence, he lifted his head to stare over at Demyx for a moment. The young man had paused in his pacing and was gesturing oddly in the air like he was talking to someone about nothing in particular. Xigbar shook his head over the thought that came to mind, '_He couldn't be the person Luxord wants me to find…_' To be sure, he asked out loud, "You wouldn't happen to know an Axel Shuboushi would you, Demyx?"

The blond stopped whatever he had being doing to look over at Xigbar in partial surprise then happiness over the question, "You know Ax-man?"

Ok, there was fate… Then there were coincidences that screamed at you to run as far away as physically possible because it was guaranteed you wouldn't like the outcome. '_And in this case…_' Xigbar thought while rubbing unconsciously at the scar again that had suddenly started to ache, '_This whole situation seems too close for comfort_.' He could only hope that whatever Luxord had in mind wouldn't cause any problems later for "The Organization."

---

Meanwhile, unaware of his associate's problems, Axel by then had given Kairi directions to an establishment called "The Inferno." The place was amazingly small and unassuming from the outside that you almost wouldn't believe it was a bar, considering it looked like nothing more than an old dilapidated barn from the outside with a neon sign.

Looks can be deceiving though, for the inside was not only clean and modern-looking with the leather and wood pub tables, but it also had a sitting bar highlighted with neon signs and an old, restored jukebox that played a steady stream of classics from the 80's and 90's in the back.

Kairi personally thought the place was just too cute and had gone to sit down at one of the tables eagerly while Hayner instantly headed towards the bar to order a couple of Kentucky Blue's for himself.

Roxas just wished he had decided to stay at the hotel with Olette as he followed Kairi and Axel to the table the girl had chosen. By the look in Kairi's eyes though, he had a feeling that if he suggested leaving she would get him back for it later, so, in favor of keeping the temporary peace, he chose to ignore them both and decided on drinking a virgin strawberry daiquiri while they were there since he was still too young to drink.

It didn't take long for the rest of the group to get wasted, and Roxas found himself trying to ward off the attentions of the redheaded male who had chosen to sit as close as possible to him. "Would you leave me alone?" Roxas muttered, pushing at Axel's hands that had started to alternately touch and wander his person for the past hour. It seemed that the more his companions had to drink, especially Axel, the friskier they became. It was...really demented in Roxas's mind.

"Ah, come on, Roxas," the redhead pouted as he looked down at the younger man while leaning his long arm across the blond's shoulder, "I promise to love you forever and ever."

The blond tried to push Axel's face away since his breath stunk a little like booze. He turned to glare up at the taller male as he leaned a little too close for comfort and tried to ignore the idea that he thought the guy's actions were cute since he wasn't interested in any other relationships because of Seifer. "Get. Off," he pushed at the hand that had moved to touch his ass.

Axel had managed to drink a few too many Samuel Adams since entering the establishment and was trying to control the sudden and almost overwhelming urge to drag the blond away by his hair like a caveman to the nearest abandoned sofa in the corner and cuddle with him–or make out depending on how horny he could get the other boy. "You know you want to..."

"I am not dancing with you!"

At the moment Axel became tipsy, he had made it his mission to get even closer to Roxas. The first part of his plan involved dancing, which would be followed by slow kisses, hot sex, and maybe a dual lease on a condo. Axel sighed at the lovely image that entered his head of Roxas wearing a pink apron and nothing else and welcoming him home with open arms like a good little wife. He decided to keep the last image to himself though, thinking the blond might not appreciate how fast his mind worked.

"Oh, come on, Roxas." Kairi had started to sway in her seat and appeared to be thoroughly smashed. She had taken to being Axel's drunk cheering section and thought it was a great idea if the two would dance. She had even talked Hayner into dancing with another guy that had been eyeing him since he stepped through the door despite his more homophobic tendencies.

"No. I don't like dancing." It wasn't the complete truth, but it was better than telling the two redheads that he just wasn't interested in any body-to-body contact for a while.

His two redheaded companions however, being drunk and not completely in control of their actions, seemed to think otherwise and were bound and determined to change Roxas's mind. As one, they turned and looked over at the startled blond, giving him their best "Wounded Puppy" look, which was really, really creepy coming from two older people who weren't exactly cute, especially while drunk and looking like idiots. "Would you stop that. You're creeping me out…"

"No!"

"Fine…" he sighed. If it would get the two to shut up and stop staring at him, then he would dance with Axel. "I'll dance with him once. Once! Got it? After that, I don't want to hear another word about it." Since he had a feeling the redhead would attempt to get him to do things he wasn't comfortable with, he held up one of his fingers to clarify further, "Once," while ignoring the fact that, at some point, he had decided that Axel was somewhat amusing and maybe just a little sexy.

Kairi gave Axel a quick high-five, "Score!"

Axel was beyond ecstatic by that point. "Let's shake a leg, Roxy!" the redheaded male yelled in delight, quickly grabbing Roxas's hand before he could change his mind and pulling him off the stool and onto the dance floor. He ignored the glare the blond gave him over the nickname.

It seemed that the music gods were against Roxas, because at that moment, instead of a normal dancing song like what had been playing for the last _two hours_, the jukebox suddenly decided to switch to an old romantic 80's song. 'God, shoot me now,' Roxas inwardly cursed as a very drunk Axel eagerly pulled the blond's body against his own and started moving into a slow moving dance.

He was surprised that the redhead could manage to move that gracefully despite his inebriation. Looking up, he found his blue eyes locking with the most beautiful green eyes he'd ever seen. '_Beautiful…_' Roxas thought as Axel lead him into another turn.

"God, I love this song…" Kairi moaned in delight while watching the two from her seat. Sure, "I Melt with You" by Modern English was an older song, but it would always be a classic in Kairi's heart and so romantic. She sighed again while lifting her bottle of beer to her lips to sing into it along with the band, watching as both Axel and Roxas, despite their height differences, moved really well together. She thought it was almost as if they might have been partners in a past life.

'_I shouldn't be doing this_,' was Roxas's first thought as he nervously stared up at Axel as they continued to slowly maneuver across the floor together. He tried to keep their bodies as far apart as he could, not wanting to get close, but placing his left hand on the taller man's shoulder was difficult so he had to settle for grabbing onto his arm midway and letting his other hand be held within Axel's right hand.

Dancing with someone other than Seifer was different, not necessarily bad in Roxas's mind, but he still found himself comparing the differences between the two men who were almost as different as night and day. This extended to their styles, appearances, and attitudes. '_I love his eyes_...' was the blonde's lone thought as Axel continued to stare silently at him. _'Really nice...and comfortable..._' He started to forget why he was dancing so far away from the other in the first place and moved closer to the redhead after Axel dipped him, allowing his head to lean upon Axel's firm chest as they continued through to the next song.

Axel, who was more sober at that point, seemed to find himself getting more comfortable around the blond and took to wrapping his arms around the smaller boy, pulling him into a slight embrace as they swayed from foot to foot.

Without thinking much about the consequences, especially considering he might still be a little drunk and the fact that he had just agreed to kidnapping the kid in order to gain access to Seifer and "The Organization," Axel closed his eyes and leaned down, slowly touching his lips to Roxas's soft yet pliable ones–a texture he decided he liked as he continued the soft massaging movement with his lips for a while, mentally mapping the texture in his mind before managing to coax Roxas's mouth to open with his tongue so that he could kiss him deeper. Roxas gasped in surprise at the soft movement of the redhead's tongue as it licked at the seem of his lips but didn't instantly move away, which was a good sign in Axel's book so he proceeded to push his tongue slowly inside the blonde's mouth allowing their lips and tongues to melt and slide against one another's.

The last song they were dancing to eventually stopped, but the two continued to kiss as if there was nothing else they wanted to do in this life, finding that, despite the fact they had just met, this was something they both wanted but hadn't realized they wanted until that moment. They were eventually forced to pull away in order to regain their breaths again and took to staring at each other silently in wonder. Both ignored Kairi who starting to whoop in delight and shine a lighter; the girl was clearly shit-faced and half mad, but she wouldn't have changed the situation for anything in the world.

"Roxas… " Axel started to say, moving his hand to cup Roxas's cheek, "I…"

The blond blinked a bit as though coming out of a trance at the sound of his name, and he shoved Axel away in shock over what he had just allowed the redhead to do and ran out of the room. "Stay away from me." Roxas found he wasn't ready for another relationship so soon. It seemed that he doubted anyone could really care about him other than just for sex. Seifer had been the one to make him think that way after all.

Axel watched Roxas run away from him in surprise. He had thought they had finally been connecting like he wanted. '_I mean... he responded to the kiss, didn't he?' _Somehow it seemed that the situation must be worse than how Luxord described it, and he wondered what exactly had happened between Seifer and Roxas as he ran out of the bar to look for the blond.


	6. Chapter VI

I know it has been a why since I last updated a chapter on this story, I am sorry it got delayed, but I actually got distracted and forgot to reread what Ayme had edited for me because I was not only busy with work, but also the king of all writer's blocks with one of my other stories. I am happy to say that for now, its gone, so I updated. I hope you guys like the new chapter, since I am started to become concerned that maybe people don't like this story as much as I do, so please review.

Disclaimer: characters belong to Square Enix, Disney, Etc.

'Level XIII-Chapter VI' by KitsuneFun

'I'm so stupid…' Roxas thought as he quickly found the pink convertible in the dark, once found, he collapsed to his knees next to the door and started banging his fists against the metal side as he leaned his forehead against the cool metal, he could feel the tears sliding down his cheeks, "So stupid…"

He didn't hear the falling of feet behind him stop, all he could feel was pain, so it surprised him when he was suddenly enfolded into a warm pair of arms from behind, he stopped hitting the sides of the car to stare wide-eyed over his shoulder… it was Axel. The man was leaning close and despite his size had managed to curl his large frame around Roxas's form and was leaning his head against the back of the blond's neck, "Axel…" he didn't notice the word left his mouth till the man lifted his head and his intense green eyes stared back into his own.

Axel gave a small smile before slowly lifting his hand and using his thumb to softly wipe away Roxas's tears, "It will be ok… I promise I will never let him hurt you again," from the tone of his voice, Roxas wanted to believe him, but the redhead knew nothing about his past so he couldn't possibly know what he was in for by saying he would protect Roxas.

The blond leaned his forehead against the side of the car and took a deep sigh, "If he comes after me seriously… I will only be a burden to you…" he didn't want to look at Axel, he could feel his heart begin to thunder in his ear and wondered how he could feel anything for the redhead since he believe whole-heatedly that he had nothing left to give to anyone.

It didn't take much for Axel to turn the boy around so that he was now facing him, he seemed almost like a shell of a actual person and it scared him to see it, it almost sounded like he was ready to give up and end his life. Now that the boy was facing him, he held him as close as possible letting Roxas's head rest in the crook of his neck. He was surprised when the action made the smaller boy begin to shake, leaning back he slowly lifted the boy's head to his face, finding the blond's eyes closed he found himself leaning close and kissing at the still wet cheeks softly, "Believe in me… please…"

Roxas's eyes slowly opened and they stared back, searching his own eyes for the truth, "Why… you don't even know me?"

Axel heard the hurt laying in the tone of his voice and it broke his heart, he didn't care at that moment if it had only been a few hours since he met the blond, you couldn't deny finding love or this kind of chemisty when it bit you in the ass… literally, he grinned warmly at the boy, "Well, your one hell of a dancer… so…"

The boy laughed at the unexpected joke and visible relaxed a bit before he asked again, "Seriously Axel… I'm a boy running away from his ex fiancé, we met only a few hours ago… so you know nothing about me or for that matter Seifer, in fact if he saw us right now he would kill you slowly while I watched and then force me to have sex next to your dying corpse… are you ready to face that?"

The redhead's brows furrowed in anger over the image, it was a little too detailed to just be an example, "He's done it before."

It wasn't a question, he noticed Roxas bite his lips and duck his head in misery, his shoulders began to shake, "Yeah… it was the day Sora left…" he licked his dry lips slowly, wondering why it was so easy to explain all of this to redhead, it was crazy how comfortable he felt with a practical stranger, "I felt lonely and while I was walking through the compound I met this guy named Cid, he was really nice and we sat talking… just talking for hours," Axel watched the blond's eyes soften at the memories before they hardened a little at what happened next, "I didn't think the other man would kiss me… and it really wasn't anything special, but Seifer was there and he threw the man off me before having Vexen grab him and drag him to his torture chamber while he pulled me along…" he watched as the boy's shaking increased.

He could tell the memories were terrible by the way the blond reacted to them and Axel lifted his hand to gently caress Roxas's cheek before letting it slide up through the blond's surprisingly soft hair resting there, "If you don't want to continue…"

Roxas lifted his head again and looked at Axel, he could feel his mouth dry as he stared in wonder into those green eyes, 'How can he care?' he didn't know how it was possible, but this man did, Roxas could tell just by staring into his eyes and he had to wonder… 'was this what real love was?'

Before he thought about the consequences, Roxas found himself leaning close and hesitantly kissing the redhead's lips, they still tasted faintly of alcohol, but at the moment the blond didn't care, '…this was Axel,' the thought came to mind that he didn't care anymore if he was killed when Seifer found him with Axel, he had a feeling being with the redhead that everything would be ok, and for now he wanted this man.

The kiss became heated quickly as mouths slowly opened and tongues slowly dueled against one another's, it was surprisingly Axel who pulled away this time from the flustered blonde, "You don't have to stop…" the blond muttered leaning closer in order to continue only to watch Axel back up a bit in frustration.

The redhead shook his head slowly, "You have no idea how tempting that offer is Roxas," he gave a nervous laugh while running a hand through his long spiky red hair, "but even I know you're not ready for this…"

"But…" Roxas felt a finger press against his lips silencing him.

"No more buts…" the redhead grinned, "Even though yours is the cutest one I have seen in a long time…" he waggled his brows comically and watched in satisfaction as the blond's cheeks flushed a bright red, "How about we take our time with whatever this is first?"

The blond gave a big smile; it was beautiful to Axel's eyes, "Ok."

"Yeah…" the redhead quickly pecked the blonde on the cheek before pulling himself along with Roxas to their feet, "Now lets go get Kairi and Mr In-Denial-Haynor and head back to the hotel… huh?"

Roxas's heart felt light for the first time… in a long time and he couldn't help the smile that remained on his face as he walked silently next to the redhead, 'Maybe this could work,' he thought staring up at the redhead's profile, 'I want to believe it will… I want to believe it with my whole heart,' he watched the redhead turn his head to look down at him and smile, 'It couldn't hurt to fall for this man.'

Axel seemed to be thinking the same as he stared down at Roxas, this was going against any plans he had made before to enter 'The Organization', get Seifer and get his bounty. He realized that he couldn't just walk away from the blonde, it seemed that the boy had Axel wrapped quickly around his finger without even trying… it was crazy, but the redhead believed that considering his background, it wasn't too odd to fall in love like this.

It just meant that Axel's plans were going to change; hopefully Luxord would be willing to help him with the change. He watched as Roxas entered the bar and walked over towards the counter and started to laugh as he saw Kairi dancing on the top… Coyote Ugly style.

Haynor for his part was too busy resting his head against some random man's lap and had started to snore, it was amusing to see the boy acting like this and he took note to mention this later since he had a feeling it would be amusing to bring it up just to see how the boy would react.

"Ah.. Come on… Rossas!" Kairi mumbled as she stood up on the counter, "Ish fun… come shake… your tail-feather," she started to laugh and wobble more on her feet.

It was amusing, but Axel knew from experience, having traveled with Demyx that it was definitely time for the little redheaded girl to get down. He moved over to the counter, just in time, to catch the girl as she suddenly fell off the counter, catching her with in his arms, "I guess it time we went princess."

The girl lifter her head at the sudden nickname and smiled up at him, "Are you done with whoopee time with Roxas?"

He looked over at the blond's whose face started to heat again and chuckled before giving Kairi a slow wink, "Let's just say… It's to be continued…"

"Do you think its ok to start over?"

Xigbar turned his head to look over at Demyx as they lay side by side on top of the blond's van roof, how they had gotten their was perhaps the oddest of occurrences. It had all started with the their tow truck driver coming to pick them up… except he wasn't their truck driver and had run off with his car leaving them stranded 2 miles away from their hotel and they had ended up having to walk the rest of the way back to the hotel because their was no cabs to pick them up at that hour.

It had been almost cute they way Demyx had pouted the entire way, considering he felt it was his fault that driver had taken Xigbar's car and he ended up offering to drive him in their van to meet up with Axel.

When they had arrived back at the Hotel, Demyx was surprised that his partner was no where in site considering it was now 12:15 am at night, and unfortunately Axel also had the key to the room and since the Hotel manager was now asleep their was no way for the blond to get back in his room so he decided to lay on top of the roof and look at the stars while he waited for Axel to get back from where ever the hell he'd gone.

Xigbar was in no rush at that point to go back to the room so he lay next to the younger man on top of the roof and they both stared up at the beautiful night sky, the night sky resembled a velvet blanket with diamonds spread out as if someone had thrown them strategically against the blackness for such an effect… it was beautiful.

"I don't really see a need to… it wasn't your fault," Xigbar stated with a shrug of his shoulder, "Besides its nice laying with you…" his face turned back to the sky so he missed the blush that suffused the younger man's face at the comment.

"Oh really…" the younger boy quickly leaned up on his side and stared down at Xigbar thoughtfully, "I can think of better places we could be…" he waggled his brows making Xigbar laugh and push him back.

"I think it's a little too early for that… besides we are officially working together now, so we shouldn't be mixing business with pleasure." Even though Xigbar would have loved nothing better than to show Demyx just how much he liked the idea of going somewhere else.

The blonde didn't seem amused by the answer and he quickly straddled Xigbar's waist, leaning his arms on either side of the man's wide shoulders as he moved his face close to Xigbar's own till the tip of their noses touched, "And what if I like mixing business with pleasure?" he leaned his mouth close till he could feel the other's breath releasing against his own, "Are you going to stop me if I say… do this?" he closed the gap and kissed Xigbar slowly, just letting his lips massage against the older man's unresponsive ones.

"God… I can tell your going to be the death of me," Xigbar muttered, giving in and using his right hand to pull the blond's face closer by the back of his head while using his left hand to massage the younger man's buttocks.

The action made Demyx laugh, "You have to stop calling me other names though… my name's Demyx… D.. E…" he was cut off by Xigbar who used his tongue to effectively silence the younger man.

"AHEM!" a very distinct and loud cough effectively interrupted them, Demyx was the first to move, by getting off of Xigbar and turning to look down over the side of van at an amused Axel standing below them.

"As much fun as it looks to stargaze we really should get to bed Demyx… besides," a large grin suffused the redhead's face as he stared up at his flushed partner, "I have a ride with someone else to Las Vegas so I need my girls Betty and Veronica," The names of course referred to the redhead's specially designed and built pair of Colt 45 automatic pistols with red enameled barrels with handles colored with yellow and orange flames over them. they had been made by a underground company named Chakram that worked exclusively for not only bounty hunters, but millionaires and celebrities… they were a very expensive set of weapons, but Axel referred to them as his daughters.

Demyx looked at him oddly a moment, "I can get them for you, but why are you riding with someone else… all our equipment is in the van?"

"Because…" Axel gave a smirk, "Roxas isn't riding in the van…"

Blue eyes widened in surprise, "You found the kid?" he turned to look at Xigbar in excitement, he wasn't concerned when the older man took to eyeing the two of them quietly, "Isn't that great… it shouldn't take any time at all to return him to 'the Organization'?"

Axel looked at the older man that was hidden till then behind Demyx and frowned, it didn't bode well that 'The Organization' top assassin was here, he had to subdue what information he was going to tell his partner for now since he didn't want Xigbar to head back to his superior with the news that Axel was defecting from the original deal he had made with Luxord. He needed to speak with the head of security first, maybe he would see the redhead's point and go with the new plan he had in mind to use a decoy of Roxas to get them inside and then get Seifer.

"Don't get excited yet Demy I haven't had a chance to get him alone yet… that's why I am traveling with the group in their car, hopefully in Vegas… their will be plenty of opportunities to kidnap him there," his partner nodded, accepting the lie he was given and jumped off the roof to get to the guns leaving Axel alone with Xigbar.

"Let's hope for both our sakes you get the boy soon… Seifer isn't someone who likes waiting," Xigbar managed to say when Demyx was out of distance of their conversation.

Axel's green eyes narrowed at the threat, but he knew better than to tell the assassin what he really thought of him since he didn't want anything to happen with Roxas, "Don't worry I always deliver on my promises…" He just wasn't forthcoming with what he had exactly promised and he knew that it could possibly mean his life if he messed with 'The Organization' not that the redhead cared he had dealt with worse people and had managed to survive, what worried him was what could happen to Roxas. The blond was Axel's priority now.


End file.
